The BBC snoozeroom
Whistleblower reveals staff are nodding off on the job
The BBC has been accused of wasting licence fee payers’ money by allowing its staff to sleep on the job.
An insider from the Corporation’s News Channel took numerous pictures of BBC workers dozing in their chairs during shifts.
One man was shown wearing an eyemask as he brazenly took a nap, and the source claimed that another man even brings a duvet to work in order to get a comfortable rest.
The pictures sparked anger amongst MPs and licence fee payers, who said ‘idle’ BBC staff were ‘exploiting’ the system.
The angry colleague who took the photographs said: ‘It’s very difficult to work with someone snoring next to you.’
The whistleblower added: ‘In a 12-hour shift I would estimate some staff do around an hour of work.
‘You can look around and there are three or four people in a row with their feet up and soundly asleep.
‘I started taking photos as a joke but it’s not funny any more.’ he told The Sun newspaper: ‘Viewers and licence payers will be shocked by the wastage.’
The pictures were reportedly taken between late 2013 and earlier this year in the Broadcasting house newsroom in London.
Some 150 workers are reported to be on night duty.
But the source said: ‘There are far too many managers so once they have delegated, there isn’t anything for them to do – so they go to sleep or watch Netflix.’
Tory MP Andrew Rosindell said: ‘Working through the night can be strenuous but such obvious overstaffing and idle work is exploiting the system.’ And fellow Conservative MP Peter Bone said: ‘ It’s extraordinary licence fee payers are effectively paying for people to have a kip at work. Someone at the BBC must get to grips with this.’ But a BBC spokesman said: ‘When they take a break, whether they walk around the block, go for a cup of tea or just simply rest, that’s surely up to them. The BBC is hugely grateful to its journalists who work through the night to make sure the country has the best possible news service when it wakes up in the morning.’